Fingerprint-Based Authorization Platform for Electronic-Based Examination

Abstract

The advent of technology has revolutionized systemic approach to issues and methodology in different areas of life. Technological apparatus has stepped up human performance and efficiency in transportation, agriculture, entertainment, resource management, training, assessment and other areas of man’s endeavour. Specifically, educational assessment has witnessed a shift in paradigm. Since the traditional approaches to examination suffer in areas of security and standard, they are now being replaced in several places with electronic-based methods which have helped human factors in efficient service delivery. Existing electronic-based examination use PIN, password or token for authorization and they are susceptible to different forms of irregularities ranging from impersonation to other related practices. The research reported in this paper focused on the development of a platform that uses fingerprint-based technology for authenticating electronic-based examination takers with a view to improve on security and control. The platform uses suitable mathematical models for fingerprint database, enhancement, feature extraction and pattern matching. A prototype of the platform was subjected to evaluation using fingerprints from different scanners and 500 research subjects. Analysis of results on error rates and matching speed revealed the suitability of the proposed platform.